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In Search of Africa
"There I was, standing alone, unable to cry as I said goodbye to Sidimé Laye, my best friend, and to the revolution that had opened the door of modernity for me--the revolution that had invented me." This book gives us the story of a quest for a childhood friend, for the past and present, and above all for an Africa that is struggling to find its future.
In 1996 Manthia Diawara, a distinguished professor of film and literature in New York City, returns to Guinea, thirty-two years after he and his family were expelled from the newly liberated country. He is beginning work on a documentary about Sékou Touré, the dictator who was Guinea's first post-independence leader. Despite the years that have gone by, Diawara expects to be welcomed as an insider, and is shocked to discover that he is not.
The Africa that Diawara finds is not the one on the verge of barbarism, as described in the Western press. Yet neither is it the Africa of his childhood, when the excitement of independence made everything seem possible for young Africans. His search for Sidimé Laye leads Diawara to profound meditations on Africa's culture. He suggests solutions that might overcome the stultifying legacy of colonialism and age-old social practices, yet that will mobilize indigenous strengths and energies.
In the face of Africa's dilemmas, Diawara accords an important role to the culture of the diaspora as well as to traditional music and literature--to James Brown, Miles Davis, and Salif Kéita, to Richard Wright, Spike Lee, and the ancient epics of the griots. And Diawara's journey enlightens us in the most disarming way with humor, conversations, and well-told tales.
In 1996 Manthia Diawara, a distinguished professor of film and literature in New York City, returns to Guinea, thirty-two years after he and his family were expelled from the newly liberated country. He is beginning work on a documentary about Sékou Touré, the dictator who was Guinea's first post-independence leader. Despite the years that have gone by, Diawara expects to be welcomed as an insider, and is shocked to discover that he is not.
The Africa that Diawara finds is not the one on the verge of barbarism, as described in the Western press. Yet neither is it the Africa of his childhood, when the excitement of independence made everything seem possible for young Africans. His search for Sidimé Laye leads Diawara to profound meditations on Africa's culture. He suggests solutions that might overcome the stultifying legacy of colonialism and age-old social practices, yet that will mobilize indigenous strengths and energies.
In the face of Africa's dilemmas, Diawara accords an important role to the culture of the diaspora as well as to traditional music and literature--to James Brown, Miles Davis, and Salif Kéita, to Richard Wright, Spike Lee, and the ancient epics of the griots. And Diawara's journey enlightens us in the most disarming way with humor, conversations, and well-told tales.
304 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
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February 19, 2017
This book was a tough read for me. The author is a university professor and the book reads very much like a text book. It is extremely intellectual and philosophical.
There were parts I enjoyed such as the author describing interactions with friends and strangers in Guinea, Mali, Cote d'Ivoire, and Liberia; his struggles to understand where he fits as an African immigrant to the US; and some of his insights into African and African-American life. He has several sections where he ruminates very philosophically on books he's read. Some of it was interesting, but honestly, a lot of it was just way over my head! Here is a sample sentence: "The frequent reference to change in conversionist discourse echoes the modernist impulse toward constant renewal." Yeah, I'm not sure what that even means.
His final chapter entitled "Homeboy Cosmopolitan" includes some really useful insights in understanding today's American black culture, though the book was written in the late 1990's, so I'd like to see an updated version of this chapter written by the author.
If you are a student of African history, of sociology, or of African-American culture, you may enjoy this book. Just be aware that it is VERY intellectual!
There were parts I enjoyed such as the author describing interactions with friends and strangers in Guinea, Mali, Cote d'Ivoire, and Liberia; his struggles to understand where he fits as an African immigrant to the US; and some of his insights into African and African-American life. He has several sections where he ruminates very philosophically on books he's read. Some of it was interesting, but honestly, a lot of it was just way over my head! Here is a sample sentence: "The frequent reference to change in conversionist discourse echoes the modernist impulse toward constant renewal." Yeah, I'm not sure what that even means.
His final chapter entitled "Homeboy Cosmopolitan" includes some really useful insights in understanding today's American black culture, though the book was written in the late 1990's, so I'd like to see an updated version of this chapter written by the author.
If you are a student of African history, of sociology, or of African-American culture, you may enjoy this book. Just be aware that it is VERY intellectual!
Displaying 1 of 1 review